How Long Is “Battling the Yakuza”?

Organized crime syndicates are deeply entrenched in Japanese history. Known as the Jakuza, they were once seen as gangsters with strict code of honor, helping the police to fight the criminal underworld. The Yakuza in Japan has links that extend as far back as 400 years to Edo era. But their days of protecting the weak against the strong are long gone. Today, the Yakuza is a criminal network with nearly 80,000 members operating in 22 crime syndicates, and raking in billions of dollars a year. And Japan's law enforcement wants to wipe them out once and for all. With their links to drug and prostitution rings, corporate crimes and deadly shootings, Japanese officials want choke the Yakuza's existence by starving them financially.